Auctions: Monterey 2023 Rings Up $400M in Sales

The Monterey 2023 auto auctions closed with a mixed message. On the one hand, the $400.1M total and 68 percent sell-through rate for the Bonhams, Broad Arrow, Gooding & Company, Mecum, and RM Sotheby’s sales reflected rather sharp drops from the 2022’s $473M and 78 percent sell-through.

Yet, there were still some stellar sales in Monterey, with Ferraris dominating in the higher ranges, as usual. The weekend’s topper was sold by Bonhams Quail: A Motorsports Gathering auction, a 1967 Ferrari 412P Berlinetta, one of just two of these endurance racers built, for $30,255,000. This made it the fourth most valuable Ferrari and fifth most valuable car overall ever sold at a public auction.

Taking second place, the 1957 Jaguar XKSS offered by RM Sotheby’s brought $13,205,000 – right in the middle of its $12M-$14M estimate. Grabbing the bronze, a 1962 Ferrari 250 GT SWB Berlinetta sold for $9,465,000 at Gooding & Company.

Let’s start with the biggest sales:

2023 Monterey Auctions Top 10 Sales

1967 Ferrari 412P Berlinetta: $30,255,000 (Bonhams)
1957 Jaguar XKSS: $13,205,000 (RM Sotheby’s)
1962 Ferrari 250 GT SWB Berlinetta: $9,465,000 (Gooding & Company)
1959 Ferrari 410 Superamerica Series III: $6,605,000 (RM Sotheby’s)
1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4: $5,395,000 (RM Sotheby’s)
1937 Bugatti Type 57 SC Tourer: $5,395,000 (RM Sotheby’s)
1914 Mercer Type 35-J Raceabout: $4,735,000 (Gooding & Company)
1933 Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 Cabriolet: $4,515,000 (Gooding & Company)
1995 Ferrari F50: $4,240,000 (Broad Arrow Auctions)
2003 Ferrari Enzo (RM Sotheby’s) and 1912 Simplex 50hp Toy Tonneau: each $4,075,000.

Of the 1,200 or so cars to cross the auction blocks at Monterey this year, 150 brought over $1M. “We’ve observed a cooling market for the past 15 months, and in Monterey we finally witnessed that trend touch the highest echelons of the collector car world,” Hagerty reported.

Ferraris Bring the Gold

Ferrari’s were common across the top-10 lists for all five major auctions, including six apiece for the Gooding & Company, RM Sotheby’s, and Mecum lists. Speaking of Ferraris, the “barn find” Lost & Found collection of slightly-to-majorly damaged Ferraris offered by RM Sotheby’s at no reserve brought $16.5M, exactly 10 percent of the auction company’s total for the weekend.

Among Premier Financial Services auction preview cars, a 1967 Ferrari 330 GTS sold at RM Sotheby’s for just under $3M. The 330 GTS from the “Lost and Found” collection, a car needing restoration, brought $1,116,000.

Among numerous modern era Ferraris, Broad Arrow’s #2 sale was a 1985 288 GTO: $3,910,000 and RM Sotheby’s sold a 2011 599 GTO for $1M and a 2005 Superamerica for $978K, both cars exceeding their high estimates.

Blue Ferrari 330 GTS front view — This 1967 Ferrari 330 GTS sold at RM Sotheby’s for just under $3M (Source: RM Sotheby’s)

Seven-Figure Porsches and Lexus

While Porsches were not as prevalent in the top-10 lists across the five auction, there were still some notable sales: The #2 sale at Bonhams was a 1966 Porsche 906 for $2,040,000. Porsche built 50 of these road racers, which set the stage for the marque’s dominance over Ferrari in the upper echelon of endurance racing. (A quartet of 906s took 4-5-6-7 at the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans behind the 1-2-3 Ford GT40s. Broad Arrow’s #4 sale was a 2015 Porsche 918 Spyder for just under $2M; RM Sotheby’s sold a highly original 1988 Porsche 959 Komfort for $1.7M, more than half a million over its high estimate.

Mecum’s #7 sale, 1956 Porsche 356A 1500 GS Carrera Speedster was a Premier Financial Services preview car that brought $935,000, which was near the top of its estimate.

Among other supercars sold, a 2020 McLaren Speedtail, one of 106 made and with just 177 miles shown, sold for $2,315,000 at RM Sotheby’s. The same auction sold a 47-mile 2012 Lexus LFA for $1,105,000, making this the first non-Nürburgring edition to race past $1M. With those miles, both seem destined to remain a museum pieces rather than to be enjoyed as supercars. The LFA’s long-ago ancestor, a Toyota 1967 2000GT, brought $940,000 at the Broad Arrow Radius sale at the Monterey Jet Center.

There were some notable no-sales. At RM Sotheby’s, a $17M bid was not enough to take home a 1964 Ferrari 250 LM that had a pre-sale estimate of $18M-$20M. At Gooding & Company, a 1960 Porsche RS60 was bid to $4.8M, but the auction company’s website showed it still for sale on August 22 with a $5.5M ask. A 2003 Ferrari Enzo with 17,000 miles, a Premier Financial Services preview car, was a no-sale against a $2.9M-$3.4M estimate

Cream color 1956 Porsche Speedster left front view — *This 1956 Porsche 356A Speedster offered by Mecum sold for $935k (Source: Mecum Auctions)*

Chevy Power Gets Big Bucks at Monterey

A Chevy Corvette-powered Italian delicacy, the 1968 Bizzarrini 5300 GT offered by RM Sotheby’s, sold in the middle of its estimate at $915,250. The 1963 Corvette String Ray “fuelie” at Gooding & Company brought $263K against a pre-sale estimate of $250K-$300K. In between those two, Mecum sold a 1971 Chevrolet Corvette ZR2 convertible for $863,500. (“ZR2” was the road-race prep option package for a model with the big-block 454 V8.)

Silver-Blue 1963 Corvette right front view — 1963 Corvette Sting Ray brought in $263k for Gooding & Company (source: Gooding & Company)

Pre-war Era Cars Shine

Among pre-WWII European thoroughbreds, the highest sale was the #4 car at RM Sotheby’s, a 1937 Bugatti Type 57SC Tourer by Corsica for $5,395,000 while a 1933 Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 Cabriolet was Gooding & Company’s #3 sale, bringing $4,515,000. Broad Arrow’s #8 sale was a 1935 Mercedes-Benz 500K Sindelfingen Cabriolet A for $1,710,000.

RM Sotheby’s the #8 and #10 cars were pre-WWII American classics, a 1933 Packard Twelve-Series 1006 Dietrich Convertible Victoria for $3,305,000 and a 1935 Duesenberg Model SJ LaGrande Dual-Cowl Phaeton for $3,030,000. Gooding & Company sold a 1930 Duesenberg Model J Dual Cowl “Barrelside” Phaeton, one of seven built, for $2,975,000.

Going way, way back, pre-WWI classics rung up some high numbers at Monterey, topped by a brass-era icon in seventh place for the weekend, a New Jersey-built 1914 Mercer Type 35-J Raceabout getting $4.8M. This was a record for this early road-and-track car. Tying the Ferrari Enzo for 10^th place for the auction weekend was a 1912 Simplex 50 hp Toy Tonneau, with a staggering 111 years of single-family ownership, selling for $4,075,000 at Gooding & Company.

Black 1937 Bugatti Type 57SC Tourer left front view — *The top pre-WWII sale was this 1937 Bugatti Type 57SC Tourer by Corsica from RM Sotheby’s for $5.4M. (Source: RM Sotheby’s)*

Yellow 1914 Mercedes Raceabout right front view — *Among several brass-era standouts in the Monterey auctions was this 1914 Mercer Raceabout, selling for $4.735M at Gooding & Company. (Gooding & Company)*

RM Sotheby’s Top 10

1957 Jaguar XKSS: $13,205,000
1959 Ferrari 410 Superamerica Coupe Series III by Pinin Farina: $6,605,000
1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4 by Scaglietti: $5,395,000
1937 Bugatti Type 57SC Tourer by Corsica: $5,395,000
2003 Ferrari Enzo: $4,075,000
1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4 ‘Del Rio’ by Scaglietti: $3,800,000
1965 Ferrari 275 GTB/6C alloy body by Scaglietti: $3,305,000
1990 Ferrari F40: $3,305,000
1933 Packard Twelve Individual Custom Convertible Victoria by Dietrich $3,305,000